


Where the White Moon Lingers

by MilleniaOfFossilRecords



Series: IchiRuki Month (2017) [1]
Category: Bleach
Genre: F/M, Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-02-11
Updated: 2018-02-11
Packaged: 2019-03-16 14:52:21
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 792
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13638486
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MilleniaOfFossilRecords/pseuds/MilleniaOfFossilRecords
Summary: Day 4 - Scene Re-Write(Chapter 462)





	Where the White Moon Lingers

**Author's Note:**

> Super late IR month pieces? Super later IR month pieces!!!!!  
> better late then never.

Relief- that's what Orihime feels when she notices Ichigo's no loner crying, no longer in despair.

But that doesn't compare to what she feels when she sees Rukia, and the others behind her. It's a cacophony of gratitude, assurance, joy, surprise, and delight all battling it out inside her head against the biggest and fervent emotion of them all- the feeling of security. She feels safe now. She knows they're all safe now. She knows most of all that Ichigo's safe now too- safe from _himself_. She knows it because with Rukia here now, whatever was going on with Ichigo will be resolved and he won't be attacking Ginjou and the others without reason anymore!!

Everything will go back to normal now.

Or it should but ...

"What's going on?" she asks, out loud, to Chad, to the trees around them, to the sky, to _anyone_.

It makes no sense.

It makes. No. Sense.

Rukia should be stopping Ichigo. Lecturing him maybe. Apologizing to Ginjou in Ichigo's behalf or making Ichigo apologize. After all, isn't he in the wrong?? Hasn't Ichigo been acting unlike himself? Rukia must've noticed, there's no way she can't have noticed by now!!

Because Rukia knows him so, so well, and if they have noticed Ichigo's baffling change then there's no way Rukia hasn't.

There's just no way.

So why is Rukia just standing there, watching and not stopping Ichigo?!

The others too! They're just standing there behind her as if- as if-

It doesn't make any sense because- because if Rukia isn't stopping Ichigo it's- it's gotta be because she doesn't think he's doing anything wrong and if-

If.

If Ichigo isn't in the wrong then _why_ -

Why is he-

Against their friends-

Why fight-

why-

he's-

_kind_ -

Tsukishima is kind!

He's helped her so much! Protected her! Believed in her! Trained with her!

Was kind and gentle and reassuring, with eyes oh so fond and hands oh so ... soft-

The image breaks in her mind, as if she's taken her fist into a mirror and punched as hard as she could. Broken pieces fall, Tsukishima's face visible in those that don't but -

Rukia's face behind the broken glass, the falling pieces giving away to her image, no longer hiding her, giving away her face, her kind eyes, her fond gaze.

Orihime remembers soft hands.

The blanket of safety she felt falls quickly and trepidation consumes her completely. She can barely remember the last time she broke into a terrified sweat so quickly as she pivots on her foot, grabs a hold of Chad and pulls-

before Tsukishima's blow lands on him.

Chad's a heavy weight on her, as they both fall to the ground. He's shaking, clutching at his head, with wide, lost, and scared eyes, muttering too low and too fast for her to understand him. But she has a pretty good idea she knows what he's saying anyway. She notices then that she's also shaking. Each breath she takes feels harder than the last.

"What did you d to us," she breathes out, can't quite demand it of him like she wants to. Her vision's starting to go blurry no matter how hard she tries to keep it together.

Tsukishima cocks his head to the side. "Interesting. You're the last person I thought capable of breaking my illusion, let alone with your mind intact. Well," he smirks at her. "Mostly."

He raises his sword again and she calls up her shield instantly, instinctively covering Chad's body with her own as well. _Saten Kesshun_ is beyond brittle, cracks already so visible that Tsukishima pauses just to snort at her condescendingly.

Her powers represent her will and her heart, and right now she's clinging to consciousness by a thread.

She doesn't close her eyes or look away from Tsukishima's gaze as he brings down his blade at them, at her. She won't give him that satisfaction.

The blade doesn't hit her shield.

Rukia's brother stands between them, his zanpakuto having deflected Tsukishima's blade. She notices belatedly that _Saten Kesshun_ still broke apart, likely from the wind of their movements itself. She notices this just seconds before Urahara kneels beside her. He puts one hand on Chad's neck before spraying her face with a weird bottle.

"Wha-"

"Rest now Miss Inoue, everyting's going to be alright," he says, his voice quickly growing softer as he goes to spray Chad next. Everything's becoming too blurry now and in a slight panic she turns over her shoulder, everything tilting on its axis as she goes down, but she finds Ichigo and Rukia just the same. Even with everything going black she thinks she'll always be able to find them, standing tall and proud and resolute, but most of all, _together_.

**Author's Note:**

> I love Orihime she deserved better and I'm still mad, after all these years, that my bright bright girl never once seemed to realize on her own what was happening during this arc when she shouldve at least been a little suspicious.


End file.
